The Art of the Smile
Led by Dr. Neil Mandalia, My Smile Orthodontist takes a customized, technology-driven approach to improving the health, function, and aesthetics of each patient’s smile.
Neil Mandalia, D.M.D., MBA, made a very purposeful decision in choosing My Smile Orthodontist as the name of his Bucks County orthodontics practice. He sought to create a practice unlike any other, an experience fully customized to each patient. He also wanted to maximize the potential for each patient’s smile, and make the process as painless—and as enjoyable—as possible.
“The reason I was drawn to dentistry is that it’s the perfect marriage of art and science,” Dr. Mandalia says. “Every person has great potential, and so does every smile. My goal is to help you maximize that potential.”
Dr. Mandalia grew up in Newtown. After earning his Doctorate of Medicine in Dentistry from the Kornberg School of Dentistry at Temple University, he did his residency in orthodontics at the Roseman University of Health Sciences in Henderson, Nevada, where he learned alongside some of the field’s best-known orthodontists. He’s thrilled to be “back home,” using his mastery of the newest orthodontic technologies and treatments to improve the lives of friends and neighbors.
In fact, cutting-edge technology informs every aspect of Dr. Mandalia’s practice. He uses a CBCT (cone beam computed tomography) scanner to take a comprehensive map of each patient’s anatomy, thereby eliminating the guesswork in treatment planning. His handheld digital scanner takes many pictures per second of the patient’s mouth to replace traditional impressions for greater precision and patient comfort. An in-office 3D printer enables Dr. Mandalia to manufacture orthodontic appliances and other aspects of treatment that are bespoke to each patient.
“Everything we do is custom made,” he says. “During consults with patients, I like to compare it to two groups of runners competing in the same race. In one group, everyone is wearing the same kind of shoe. In the other group, the runners all have shoes that are customized to them. Who do you think will finish better? With advances in technology, and with the extra training I did in accelerated treatment techniques, I’m able to help people get the aesthetic outcome they’re looking for faster and without having to compromise.”
The benefits of a straighter, healthier smile go far beyond aesthetics.
“Making the teeth straight and the smile wider has a cascading effect,” he says. “If I’m working with younger kids, the bones are more malleable, so we can change the jaw structure and make the smile wider without surgery or pulling teeth. We can prevent issues that would need to be corrected later with speech pathology, so patients can say their S’s, B’s, and R’s. That can have a huge psychological effect and helps to build confidence. A wider smile can also prevent airway issues, which later in life can lead to sleep apnea and other problems.”
Dr. Mandalia estimates that adults account for as much as 50 percent of his practice. His patients have multiple treatment options, regardless of their age. In addition to all types of traditional wire-and-bracket braces (metal, ceramic, lingual, etc.), My Smile Orthodontist offers Invisalign for adults and children, as well as 3D-printed custom braces and Damon self-ligating braces that use light, gentle force to move teeth into their proper positions more freely and comfortably.
“I want to offer every option available, and I suggest what is best based on the X-rays, the clinical exam, and the photos we take,” he says. “Like all tools, Invisalign can treat all kinds of cases. A flathead screwdriver can be used as a chisel, to open lids, and for all kinds of things beyond its intended use. The same goes for Invisalign; if you know how to use it, you can do anything with it.”
That same meticulous approach guided Dr. Mandalia as he designed the practice’s newly opened office in Newtown. The gorgeous space seems plucked from the pages of Architectural Digest, marked by stark-white walls and tile floors, with swatches of vivid color splashed throughout. The sophisticated design should come as no surprise considering the fact that Dr. Mandalia once pondered a career in architecture.
“I was intimately involved in everything from the art on the walls to the bulbs in the lights, all to maximize the mental, physical, and emotional aspects of treatment,” he says. “We have a Jackson Pollock-style painting where we take patients’ initial photos to showcase the disorder of the smile, and I’m commissioning another painting from the same artist. I’m very happy with the office. I’d better be, because I redesigned it three times with the general contractors.”
Dr. Mandalia had patients’ health and safety clearly in mind as he prepared to open the Newtown office amid a global health crisis. A complex air-filtration system continually scrubs and recirculates the air, meeting if not exceeding the guidelines for general surgery applications.
Every decision revolves around the patient, from treatment planning and education to safety and scheduling. While patients tend to spend less time in braces than ever before, Dr. Mandalia and his team go above and beyond to accommodate patients’ hectic lifestyles.
“Sundays, evenings, early mornings—we’ll work around their schedule,” he says. “I've always spent a lot of time with each patient. We’re a boutique practice, so we’ve never wanted to have people lined up out the door. My goal here is to create the best possible treatment for each patient. I want my all of my patients to have an amazing time.”
My Smile Orthodontist
2853 S. Eagle Road
Newtown, PA 18940
(215) 799-9000
Photograph by Gabriela Barrantes
Published (and copyrighted) in Suburban Life magazine, June 2021.
